Here for the Party
by Nightcrawlerlover
Summary: AU. Yami walks into the Bronze one night and chats with Buffy and Dawn. Buffy makes a confession about herself, and Jonathan remembers that day when she saved his life.


**Hey there! Here's a new Buffy/Yu-Gi-Oh crossover oneshot I cooked up one day. I was listening to the song Here for the Party by Gretchen Wilson, and I instantly thought of an AU fanfic with Yami Yugi walking into a bar – or rather, the Bronze in Sunnydale – just as the song starts playing. Hope you like it! :) **

**Disclaimer: Genius Joss Whedon owns Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Kazuki Takahashi (also a genius) owns Yu-Gi-Oh. The lyrics to Here for the Party by Gretchen Wilson belong to their respective owners. I own the fanfics I cook up from time to time.**

* * *

Here for the Party

_Well, I'm an eight-ball shooting, _  
_double fisted, drinking son of a gun  
I wear my jeans a little tight  
just to watch the little boys come undone_

His crimson eyes glowing with both mischief and excitement, Yami stepped over the threshold of the Bronze in his cool and casual manner and walked inside. Instantly, everyone in the Bronze, including Buffy Summers, her sister Dawn, Faith Lehane, Xander Harris, Willow Rosenberg and the Scooby Gang, along with Warren Mears, Jonathan Levinson and Andrew Wells (also known as the Trio), turned their heads to look at the newcomer. Their eyes widened in surprise as they stared at the tall, handsome guy. He was blessed with crimson eyes set in a face that had a strong jawline and was said by many people, usually girls, to be quite good-looking, and a triumvirate of red, blond and black hair shaped like lightning bolts.

_I'm here for the beer_  
_and the ball-bustin' band  
Gonna get a little crazy_  
_just because I can_

_{Chorus}_  
_You know I'm here for the party_  
_And I ain't leavin' til they throw me out_  
_Gonna have a little fun, gonna get me some_  
_You know I'm here, I'm here for the party_

He was wearing a black sleeveless T-shirt covered by a blue coat. Matching black jeans seemed to go on and on over his long legs. Plus, Warren, Jonathan and Andrew seemed to think that he reminded them so much of Keanu Reeves in **The Matrix **– so much so that he could've wandered in off the set if it hadn't been for the fact that on his feet, he wore solid black bootlike shoes.

_Almost cowboy-like in a way, _Dawn thought.

He was a looker, he was. Classy as well. Definitely not one of those other guys, either – not at all.

_I may not be a ten,_  
_but the boys say I clean up good  
And if I gave ‛em half a chance _  
_for some rowdy romance, _  
_you know they would_

Of course, Buffy and Dawn noticed that they weren't the only ones who were looking at the newcomer. Not at all. It seemed that many of the patrons – girls and guys alike – were casting furtive looks over their drinks and around each other at the good-looking teenager (if that was what he really was, and he seemed to have that kind of look, of course).

However, Buffy and Dawn were even more shocked when the guy just walked up to where they were sitting, took out one of the chairs and then, after twirling it around a bit, sat down in it.

"Hello."

Even though it was only one word, his voice was enough to send them into little spasms of shock. It seemed to be quite deep – almost baritone, to be precise. Maybe it was.

Dawn, suddenly feeling a bit bold, plucked up her courage and replied, "Hello." She extended her hand. "My name's Dawn – Dawn Summers."

The guy smirked at her – but in a good way, of course – and took her hand in his. "Please, call me Yami."

As he spoke, Yami turned Dawn's hand over so that the back was facing him. Then, as the Scooby Gang, the Trio and the rest of the patrons – well, those who were able to get a good view of the scenario – looked on, Yami lowered his mouth and pressed his lips to the back of her hand, similar to how the gentleman of old would do with a lady.

_I've been waiting all week _  
_just to have a good time  
So bring on them cowboys _  
_and pick-up lines_

_{Chorus}_  
_You know I'm here for the party_  
_And I ain't leavin' til they throw me out_  
_Gonna have a little fun, gonna get me some_  
_You know I'm here, I'm here for the party_

Finally, as Dawn pulled her hand back, Yami raised his head and then winked at her.

For her part, Dawn simply blushed before saying, "Ah, a mystery guy, huh? I take it that you're not from around Sunnydale. I could tell."

As Buffy, the rest of the Scoobies and the Trio looked at her in surprise (while the other patrons had turned back to what they had been doing before Yami had walked into the place), Yami simply replied, smiling, "It seems you are quite perceptive there, Dawn. And that's something I like, of course."

"Really?"

Yami nodded. "Of course." Still smiling, he then turned to Buffy.

"And I take it that you're Elizabeth Anne ‛Buffy' Summers," he said. Buffy blinked in surprise before nodding.

"Yeah, I am," she replied. Almost instantly, Buffy felt as though she was back in high school again, at the age of sixteen, and about to ask a cute guy on a date. Her brain seemed to have run out of things to say, witty or otherwise, and her mouth had probably ran as dry as the Sahara Desert.

"Personal question?" Xander asked, turning to Buffy.

Smiling at the image of Yami and Dawn turning back to each other and exchanging a few whispers, and at the same time feeling a little bit grateful for the interruption on Xander's part, Buffy turned to Xander and said one word in reply.

"Shoot."

Yami, who was picking up the side conversation between Buffy and Xander thanks to his very sharp hearing, raised an eyebrow, intrigued. _Shoot?_

Xander then cleared his throat before looking Buffy in the eyes. "How come Yami called you ‛Elizabeth'?"

Buffy sighed. Now was another chance for her to be honest with her friends and tell them the truth. After all, whoever said that honesty was the best policy definitely had an idea of what they were talking about. And, of course the Scoobies did listen to her and believe her when she had told them about being stabbed by the demon known as the Glarghk Guhl Kashmas'nik. Its venom (which had been injected into her from its stinger, and which also carried an antidote) eventually caused her to believe that she had been in a mental institution, and that her sister and her friends, as well as the adventures she had shared with them, were just figments of her imagination. But then, after hearing some words of encouragement from her mother in the world of the mental institution, telling her to fight with all her strength against the harshness of the world and that she was able to do so because she had a support system of people who loved her, Buffy, inspired, took her mother's advice of "Believe in yourself" literally and fell back into the Sunnydale world, where she dispatched the demon and reconciled with her friends while telling them that she was sorry for sending the demon after them.

"Well, I think it's time I told you guys the truth – the truth about my real name, of course," she said.

Noticing the nervousness on her face and seeing that she had a big confession to make, Jonathan realized that she now knew exactly how he had felt, as he knew what it had been like to be in a situation where honesty was very important. Then he secretly smiled to himself as he remembered how she had saved his life when it had been his darkest hour...

...how she had played a role in stopping him from killing himself (but had made the mistake of thinking he was going to kill his peers) back when they were in their senior year at Sunnydale High School.

He closed his eyes, concentrating, and the memory of that fateful day came back...

_"I just wanted it to stop," said Jonathan, referring to being ignored, picked on and bullied, which was usually because of his smallness._

_"Yeah," said Buffy. "Well, mass murder? Not really doctor-recommended for **that** kind of pain. Besides, prison? You know, it's a lot like high school, only instead of noogies-"_

_Jonathan, now getting really confused about what she meant, interrupted her. "What are you talking about?"_

_Buffy replied, "Actions having consequences. You know, stuff like that."_

_"I – I – I wouldn't hurt anybody," Jonathan said, looking back over at the window for a moment before turning back and locking eyes with Buffy, her green orbs looking into his dark chocolate ones. Buffy was a little puzzled, which he noticed. He had a confession to make, and felt that now was the right time to do it. _

_"I came up here to kill **myself**," he finally said._

_Upon hearing those words, Buffy's brow furrowed as the well-known look of confusion made its appearance on her face. So Jonathan hadn't been planning to commit murder. He was actually referring to shooting himself the whole time. And with a gun, too. She mentally shook her head. **I had gotten it all wrong, **she thought. **I should've just told him about that voice I had heard when I got the chance. A voice that, for some inexplicable reason, sounded almost exactly like his...**_

Opening his eyes, Jonathan pulled himself out of the flashback. "It's all right, Buffy," he said, looking her straight in the eyes as he spoke. "You can tell us. We promise not to laugh. Honest."

The encouraging smile he then gave her after those words was more than enough to make Buffy feel much braver.

"Here goes."

Yami and Dawn listened closely as Buffy then began her confession.

"The reason why Yami called me ‛Elizabeth' is because Elizabeth is my real name. It was given to me at the time of my birth," Buffy calmly explained. "My whole life, I've been called ‛Buffy' both by myself and others."

She hoped that the explanation she had given, short as it was, would hopefully stave off any questions that would come her way.

Yami was the first to speak. "I think it's a lovely name. And I also like to discover and find the deeper, sometimes true meanings of a name like that myself."

"You do, Yami?" asked Willow. Yami nodded.

"Of course, Willow," he replied. "Why wouldn't I? Plus, I think that Willow is a lovely name, especially for a beautiful young lady such as yourself, of course."

_Don't want no purple hooter shooter, _  
_just some jack on the rocks  
Don't mind me if I start _  
_that trashy talk _

_{Chorus}  
You know I'm here for the party  
And I ain't leavin' til they throw me out  
Gonna have a little fun, gonna get me some  
You know I'm here, I'm here for the party_

_You know I'm here for the party  
And I ain't leavin' til they throw me out  
Gonna have a little fun, gonna get me some  
You know I'm here, I'm here for the party_

Now it was Willow's turn to blush. Dawn noticed and smiled, knowing that Yami was complimenting Willow, and in a nice way, of course.

Yami then looked back at Dawn and, smiling still, said, "And Dawn, I got to say that your name is quite lovely as well. Your mom had the right idea giving you that name, of course."

Now it was Dawn's turn to smile. She knew that Yami was right when he said that. Plus, Yami and Joyce had met a few times before Joyce's passing. Joyce would often compliment Yami on how he would be the big brother figure to her daughters. She would sometimes tell Yami that he would do the right thing in calling Buffy out when it came to being overprotective of Dawn as well.

There was no doubt about it. Yami was not only good-looking, he was also quite smart when it came to being the big brother Buffy sometimes wished she had. And he knew exactly what to say at times, too.

**Well, I hope you liked reading this story as much as I did writing it. And nice feedback is what I like, so I can keep cooking up and writing so many good stories. After all, to me writing is not only inexpensive, but also a great way to get my thoughts organized too. :)**

**~Nightcrawlerlover **


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